Cartridges for Vaporizer Devices

ABSTRACT

Cartridges for vaporizer devices are provided. In one exemplary embodiment, the cartridge can include a reservoir housing having a storage chamber and a dispensing chamber, and a vaporization chamber in communication with the dispensing chamber. The storage chamber is configured to hold a first fraction of a vaporizable material and the dispensing chamber is configured to hold a second fraction of the vaporizable material. The dispensing chamber is further configured to selectively dispense at least a first portion of the second fraction of the vaporizable material through at least one dispense opening in response to generation of one or more pressure pulses created within the dispensing chamber. The vaporizable chamber is configured to receive the dispensed vaporizable material from the dispensing chamber for vaporization by a first heating element to form a vaporized material. Vaporizer devices are also provided.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationNo. 62/755,886 filed on Nov. 5, 2018, and entitled “Cartridges ForVaporizer Devices,” the disclosure of which is incorporated herein byreference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The subject matter described herein relates to vaporizer devices,including vaporizer cartridges.

BACKGROUND

Vaporizer devices, which can also be referred to as vaporizers,electronic vaporizer devices, or e-vaporizer devices, can be used fordelivery of an aerosol (for example, a vapor-phase and/orcondensed-phase material suspended in a stationary or moving mass of airor some other gas carrier) containing one or more active ingredients byinhalation of the aerosol by a user of the vaporizing device. Forexample, electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) include a class ofvaporizer devices that are battery powered and that can be used tosimulate the experience of smoking, but without burning of tobacco orother substances. Vaporizer devices are gaining increasing popularityboth for prescriptive medical use, in delivering medicaments, and forconsumption of tobacco, nicotine, and other plant-based materials.Vaporizer devices can be portable, self-contained, and/or convenient foruse.

In use of a vaporizer device, the user inhales an aerosol, colloquiallyreferred to as “vapor,” which can be generated by a heating element thatvaporizes (e.g., causes a liquid or solid to at least partiallytransition to the gas phase) a vaporizable material, which can beliquid, a solution, a solid, a paste, a wax, and/or any other formcompatible for use with a specific vaporizer device. The vaporizablematerial used with a vaporizer device can be provided within a cartridgefor example, a separable part of the vaporizer device that containsvaporizable material) that includes an outlet (for example, amouthpiece) for inhalation of the aerosol by a user.

To receive the inhalable aerosol generated by a vaporizer device, a usermay, in certain examples, activate the vaporizer device by taking apuff, by pressing a button, and/or by some other approach. A puff asused herein can refer to inhalation by the user in a manner that causesa volume of air to be drawn into the vaporizer device such that theinhalable aerosol is generated by a combination of the vaporizedvaporizable material with the volume of air.

An approach by which a vaporizer device generates an inhalable aerosolfrom a vaporizable material involves heating the vaporizable material ina vaporization chamber (e.g., a heater chamber) to cause the vaporizablematerial to be converted to the gas (or vapor) phase. A vaporizationchamber can refer to an area or volume in the vaporizer device withinwhich a heat source (for example, a conductive, convective, and/orradiative heat source) causes heating of a vaporizable material toproduce a mixture of air and vaporized material to form a vapor forinhalation of the vaporizable material by a user of the vaporizerdevice.

Vaporizer devices can be controlled by one or more controllers,electronic circuits (for example, sensors, heating elements), and/or thelike on the vaporizer device. Vaporizer devices can also wirelesslycommunicate with an external controller for example, a computing devicesuch as a smartphone).

In some implementations, the vaporizable material can be drawn out of areservoir and into the vaporization chamber via a wicking element (e.g.,a wick). Drawing of the vaporizable material into the vaporizationchamber can be at least partially due to capillary action provided bythe wicking element as the wicking element pulls the vaporizablematerial along the wicking element in the direction of the vaporizationchamber. However, as vaporizable material is drawn out of the reservoir,the pressure inside the reservoir is reduced, thereby creating a vacuumand acting against the capillary action. This can reduce theeffectiveness of the wicking element to draw the vaporizable materialinto the vaporization chamber, thereby reducing the effectiveness of thevaporizer device to vaporize a desired amount of vaporizable material,such as when a user takes a puff on the vaporizer device. Furthermore,the vacuum created in the reservoir can ultimately result in theinability to draw all of the vaporizable material into the vaporizationchamber, thereby wasting vaporizable material. As such, improvedvaporizer devices and/or vaporization cartridges that improve upon orovercome these issues are desired.

SUMMARY

Aspects of the current subject matter relate to vaporizer devices and tocartridges for use in a vaporizer device.

In some variations, one or more of the following features may optionallybe included in any feasible combination.

In one exemplary embodiment, a cartridge is provided and includes areservoir housing having a storage chamber and a dispensing chamber, anda vaporization chamber in communication with the dispensing chamber. Thestorage chamber is configured to hold a first fraction of a vaporizablematerial and the dispensing chamber is configured to hold a secondfraction of the vaporizable material. The dispensing chamber is furtherconfigured to selectively dispense at least a first portion of thesecond fraction of the vaporizable material through at least onedispense opening in response to generation of one or more pressurepulses created within the dispensing chamber. The vaporizable chamber isconfigured to receive the dispensed vaporizable material from thedispensing chamber for vaporization by a first heating element to form avaporized material.

The dispensing chamber can have a variety of configurations. Forexample, in some embodiments, the dispensing chamber can include asecond heating element. The second heating element can be configured toselectively vaporize at least a second portion of the second fraction ofthe vaporizable material in response to activation of the second heatingelement, in which the vaporization of the second portion of the secondfraction of the vaporizable material creates the one or more pressurepulses.

In some embodiments, the at least one dispense opening can be configuredto prevent passage of the vaporizable material therethrough when aninternal pressure of the reservoir housing is substantially equal toambient pressure outside of the reservoir housing.

In some embodiments, the storage chamber and the dispensing chamber canbe in fluid communication with each other, in which a portion of thefirst fraction of the vaporizable material can be drawn into thedispensing chamber in response dispensed vaporizable material beingexpelled from the dispensing chamber.

In some embodiments, the storage chamber and the dispensing chamber canbe separated by a reservoir barrier. The reservoir barrier can have atleast one orifice extending therethrough. The at least one orifice canbe configured to allow a portion of the first fraction of thevaporizable material to be drawn into the dispensing chamber in responseto the dispensed vaporizable material being expelled from the dispensingchamber.

In some embodiments, the first heating element can be configured toselectively flash evaporate the dispensed vaporizable material intovaporized material in response to activation of the first heatingelement.

The vaporization chamber can have a variety of configurations. Forexample, in some embodiments, the vaporization chamber can define anairflow passageway that extends therethrough. The airflow passageway canbe configured to allow the vaporized material to combine with an influxof air to substantially form an aerosol.

In another exemplary embodiment, a cartridge is provided and includes areservoir housing having a storage chamber and a dispensing chamber, atleast one heating element disposed within the dispensing chamber, and avaporization chamber that is in communication with the dispensingchamber. The storage chamber is configured to hold a first fraction of avaporizable material and the dispensing chamber is configured to hold asecond fraction of the vaporizable material. The at least heating oneelement is configured to selectively vaporize at least a portion of thesecond fraction of the vaporizable material into vaporized material. Thevaporization chamber is configured to receive the vaporized materialfrom the dispensing chamber. The vaporization chamber is furtherconfigured to allow the vaporized material to be withdrawn therefrom.

In some embodiments, the vaporized material can be dispensed from thedispensing chamber and into the vaporization chamber through at leastone dispense opening that extends between the dispensing chamber and thevaporization chamber. The at least one dispense opening can beconfigured to prevent passage of the vaporizable material therethroughwhen an internal pressure of the reservoir housing is substantiallyequal to ambient pressure outside of the reservoir housing.

In some embodiments, the storage chamber and the dispensing chamber canbe in fluid communication with each other, in which a portion of thefirst fraction of the vaporizable material can be drawn into thedispensing chamber in response to the vaporized material being dispensedfrom the dispensing chamber.

In some embodiments, the storage chamber and the dispensing chamber canbe separated by a reservoir barrier having at least one orificeextending therethrough. The at least one orifice can be configured toallow a portion of the first fraction of the vaporizable material to bedrawn into the dispensing chamber in response to the vaporized materialbeing dispensed from the dispensing chamber.

In another exemplary embodiment, a vaporizer device is provided andincludes a vaporizer body and a cartridge that is selectively coupled toand removable from the vaporizer body. The cartridge includes areservoir housing having a storage chamber and a dispensing chamber, anda vaporization chamber in communication with the dispensing chamber. Thestorage chamber is configured to hold a first fraction of a vaporizablematerial and the dispensing chamber is configured to hold a secondfraction of the vaporizable material. The dispensing chamber is furtherconfigured to selectively dispense at least a first portion of thesecond fraction of the vaporizable material through at least onedispense opening in response to generation of one or more pressurepulses created within the dispensing chamber. The vaporizable chamber isconfigured to receive the dispensed vaporizable material from thedispensing chamber for vaporization by a first heating element to form avaporized material.

The vaporizer body can have variety of configurations. For example, insome embodiments, the vaporizer body can include a power source.

The dispensing chamber can have a variety of configurations. Forexample, in some embodiments, the dispensing chamber can include asecond heating element. The second heating element can be configured toselectively vaporize at least a second portion of the second fraction ofthe vaporizable material in response to activation of the second heatingelement, in which the vaporization of the second portion of the secondfraction of the vaporizable material can create the one or more pressurepulses.

In some embodiments, the at least one dispense opening can be configuredto prevent passage of the vaporizable material therethrough when aninternal pressure of the reservoir housing is substantially equal toambient pressure outside of the reservoir housing.

In some embodiments, the storage chamber and the dispensing chamber arein fluid communication with each other, in which a portion of the firstfraction of the vaporizable material can be drawn into the dispensingchamber in response to the dispensed vaporizable material being expelledfrom the dispensing chamber.

In some embodiments, the storage chamber and the dispensing chamber areseparated by a reservoir barrier having at least one orifice extendingtherethrough. The at least one orifice can be configured to allow aportion of the first fraction of the vaporizable material to be drawninto the dispensing chamber in response to the dispensed vaporizablematerial being expelled from the dispensing chamber.

In some embodiments, the first heating element can be configured toselectively flash evaporate the dispensed vaporizable material intovaporized material in response to activation of the first heatingelement.

The vaporization chamber can have a variety of configurations. Forexample, in some embodiments, the vaporization chamber can define anairflow passageway that extends therethrough. The airflow passageway canbe configured to allow the vaporized material to combine with an influxof air to substantially form an aerosol.

The details of one or more variations of the subject matter describedherein are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the descriptionbelow. Other features and advantages of the subject matter describedherein will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from theclaims. The claims that follow this disclosure are intended to definethe scope of the protected subject matter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated into and constitute apart of this specification, show certain aspects of the subject matterdisclosed herein and, together with the description, help explain someof the principles associated with the disclosed implementations. In thedrawings:

FIG. 1A is a block diagram of a vaporizer device;

FIG. 1B is a top view of an embodiment of a vaporizer device, showing avaporizer cartridge separated from a vaporizer device body;

FIG. 1C is a top view of the vaporizer device of FIG. 1B, showing thevaporizer cartridge coupled to the vaporizer device body;

FIG. 1D is a perspective view of the vaporizer device of FIG. 1C;

FIG. 1E is a perspective view of the vaporizer cartridge of FIG. 1B;

FIG. 1F is another perspective view of the vaporizer cartridge of FIG.1E;

FIG. 2A illustrates a schematic of another embodiment of a vaporizercartridge, showing the vaporizer cartridge prior to a pressure pulse;

FIG. 2B illustrates the vaporizer cartridge of FIG. 2A during a pressurepulse;

FIG. 3 illustrates another embodiment of a vaporizer cartridge; and

FIG. 4 illustrates another embodiment of a vaporizer cartridge.

When practical, similar reference numbers denote similar structures,features, or elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Implementations of the current subject matter include methods,apparatuses, articles of manufacture, and systems relating tovaporization of one or more materials for inhalation by a user. Exampleimplementations include vaporizer devices and systems includingvaporizer devices. The term “vaporizer device” as used in the followingdescription and claims refers to any of a self-contained apparatus, anapparatus that includes two or more separable parts (for example, avaporizer body that includes a battery and other hardware, and acartridge that includes a vaporizable material), and/or the like. A“vaporizer system,” as used herein, can include one or more components,such as a vaporizer device. Examples of vaporizer devices consistentwith implementations of the current subject matter include electronicvaporizers, electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS), and/or thelike. In general, such vaporizer devices are hand-held devices that heat(such as by convection, conduction, radiation, and/or some combinationthereof) a vaporizable material to provide an inhalable dose of thematerial.

The vaporizable material used with a vaporizer device can be providedwithin a cartridge (for example, a part of the vaporizer device thatcontains the vaporizable material in a reservoir or other container)which can be refillable when empty, or disposable such that a newcartridge containing additional vaporizable material of a same ordifferent type can be used). A vaporizer device can be a cartridge-usingvaporizer device, a cartridge-less vaporizer device, or a multi-usevaporizer device capable of use with or without a cartridge. Forexample, a vaporizer device can include a heating chamber (for example,an oven or other region in which material is heated by a heatingelement) configured to receive a vaporizable material directly into theheating chamber, and/or a reservoir or the like for containing thevaporizable material.

In some implementations, a vaporizer device can be configured for usewith a liquid vaporizable material (for example, a carrier solution inwhich an active and/or inactive ingredient(s) are suspended or held insolution, or a liquid form of the vaporizable material itself). Theliquid vaporizable material can be capable of being completelyvaporized. Alternatively, at least a portion of the liquid vaporizablematerial can remain after all of the material suitable for inhalationhas been vaporized.

Referring to the block diagram of FIG. 1A, a vaporizer device 100 caninclude a power source 112 (for example, a battery, which can be arechargeable battery), and a controller 104 (for example, a processor,circuitry, etc. capable of executing logic) for controlling delivery ofheat to an atomizer 141 to cause a vaporizable material 102 to beconverted from a condensed form (such as a liquid, a solution, asuspension, a part of an at least partially unprocessed plant material,etc.) to the gas phase. The controller 104 can be part of one or moreprinted circuit boards (PCBs) consistent with certain implementations ofthe current subject matter.

After conversion of the vaporizable material 102 to the gas phase, atleast some of the vaporizable material 102 in the gas phase can condenseto form particulate matter in at least a partial local equilibrium withthe gas phase as part of an aerosol, which can form some or all of aninhalable dose provided by the vaporizer device 100 during a user's puffor draw on the vaporizer device 100. It should be appreciated that theinterplay between gas and condensed phases in an aerosol generated by avaporizer device 100 can be complex and dynamic, due to factors such asambient temperature, relative humidity, chemistry, flow conditions inairflow paths (both inside the vaporizer device and in the airways of ahuman or other animal), and/or mixing of the vaporizable material 102 inthe gas phase or in the aerosol phase with other air streams, which canaffect one or more physical parameters of an aerosol. In some vaporizerdevices, and particularly for vaporizer devices configured for deliveryof volatile vaporizable materials, the inhalable dose can existpredominantly in the gas phase (for example, formation of condensedphase particles can be very limited).

The atomizer 141 in the vaporizer device 100 can be configured tovaporize a vaporizable material 102. The vaporizable material 102 can bea liquid. Examples of the vaporizable material 102 include neat liquids,suspensions, solutions, mixtures, and/or the like. The atomizer 141 caninclude a wicking element (i.e., a wick) configured to convey an amountof the vaporizable material 102 to a part of the atomizer 141 thatincludes a heating element (not shown in FIG. 1A).

For example, the wicking element can be configured to draw thevaporizable material 102 from a reservoir 140 configured to contain thevaporizable material 102, such that the vaporizable material 102 can bevaporized by heat delivered from a heating element. The wicking elementcan also optionally allow air to enter the reservoir 140 and replace thevolume of vaporizable material 102 removed. In some implementations ofthe current subject matter, capillary action can pull vaporizablematerial 102 into the wicking element for vaporization by the heatingelement, and air can return to the reservoir 140 through the wickingelement to at least partially equalize pressure in the reservoir 140.Other methods of allowing air back into the reservoir 140 to equalizepressure are also within the scope of the current subject matter.

As used herein, the terms “wick” or “wicking element” include anymaterial capable of causing fluid motion via capillary pressure.

The heating element can include one or more of a conductive heater, aradiative heater, and/or a convective heater. One type of heatingelement is a resistive heating element, which can include a material(such as a metal or alloy, for example a nickel-chromium alloy, or anon-metallic resistor) configured to dissipate electrical power in theform of heat when electrical current is passed through one or moreresistive segments of the heating element. In some implementations ofthe current subject matter, the atomizer 141 can include a heatingelement which includes a resistive coil or other heating element wrappedaround, positioned within, integrated into a bulk shape of, pressed intothermal contact with, or otherwise arranged to deliver heat to a wickingelement, to cause the vaporizable material 102 drawn from the reservoir140 by the wicking element to be vaporized for subsequent inhalation bya user in a gas and/or a condensed (for example, aerosol particles ordroplets) phase. Other wicking elements, heating elements, and/oratomizer assembly configurations are also possible.

The heating element can be activated in association with a user puffing(i.e., drawing, inhaling, etc.) on a mouthpiece 130 of the vaporizerdevice 100 to cause air to flow from an air inlet, along an airflow paththat passes the atomizer 141 (i.e., wicking element and heatingelement). Optionally, air can flow from an air inlet through one or morecondensation areas or chambers, to an air outlet in the mouthpiece 130.Incoming air moving along the airflow path moves over or through theatomizer 141, where vaporizable material 102 in the gas phase isentrained into the air. The heating element can be activated via thecontroller 104, which can optionally be a part of a vaporizer body 110as discussed herein, causing current to pass from the power source 112through a circuit including the resistive heating element, which isoptionally part of a vaporizer cartridge 120 as discussed herein. Asnoted herein, the entrained vaporizable material 102 in the gas phasecan condense as it passes through the remainder of the airflow path suchthat an inhalable dose of the vaporizable material 102 in an aerosolform can be delivered from the air outlet (for example, the mouthpiece130) for inhalation by a user.

Activation of the heating element can be caused by automatic detectionof a puff based on one or more signals generated by one or more of asensor 113. The sensor 113 and the signals generated by the sensor 113can include one or more of: a pressure sensor or sensors disposed todetect pressure along the airflow path relative to ambient pressure (oroptionally to measure changes in absolute pressure), a motion sensor orsensors (for example, an accelerometer) of the vaporizer device 100, aflow sensor or sensors of the vaporizer device 100, a capacitive lipsensor of the vaporizer device 100, detection of interaction of a userwith the vaporizer device 100 via one or more input devices 116 (forexample, buttons or other tactile control devices of the vaporizerdevice 100), receipt of signals from a computing device in communicationwith the vaporizer device 100, and/or via other approaches fordetermining that a puff is occurring or imminent.

As discussed herein, the vaporizer device 100 consistent withimplementations of the current subject matter can be configured toconnect (such as, for example, wirelessly or via a wired connection) toa computing device (or optionally two or more devices) in communicationwith the vaporizer device 100. To this end, the controller 104 caninclude communication hardware 105. The controller 104 can also includea memory 108. The communication hardware 105 can include firmware and/orcan be controlled by software for executing one or more cryptographicprotocols for the communication.

A computing device can be a component of a vaporizer system that alsoincludes the vaporizer device 100, and can include its own hardware forcommunication, which can establish a wireless communication channel withthe communication hardware 105 of the vaporizer device 100. For example,a computing device used as part of a vaporizer system can include ageneral-purpose computing device (such as a smartphone, a tablet, apersonal computer, some other portable device such as a smartwatch, orthe like) that executes software to produce a user interface forenabling a user to interact with the vaporizer device 100. In otherimplementations of the current subject matter, such a device used aspart of a vaporizer system can be a dedicated piece of hardware such asa remote control or other wireless or wired device having one or morephysical or soft (i.e., configurable on a screen or other display deviceand selectable via user interaction with a touch-sensitive screen orsome other input device like a mouse, pointer, trackball, cursorbuttons, or the like) interface controls. The vaporizer device 100 canalso include one or more outputs 117 or devices for providinginformation to the user. For example, the outputs 117 can include one ormore light emitting diodes (LEDs) configured to provide feedback to auser based on a status and/or mode of operation of the vaporizer device100.

In the example in which a computing device provides signals related toactivation of the resistive heating element, or in other examples ofcoupling of a computing device with the vaporizer device 100 forimplementation of various control or other functions, the computingdevice executes one or more computer instruction sets to provide a userinterface and underlying data handling. In one example, detection by thecomputing device of user interaction with one or more user interfaceelements can cause the computing device to signal the vaporizer device100 to activate the heating element to reach an operating temperaturefor creation of an inhalable dose of vapor/aerosol. Other functions ofthe vaporizer device 100 can be controlled by interaction of a user witha user interface on a computing device in communication with thevaporizer device 100.

The temperature of a resistive heating element of the vaporizer device100 can depend on a number of factors, including an amount of electricalpower delivered to the resistive heating element and/or a duty cycle atwhich the electrical power is delivered, conductive heat transfer toother parts of the electronic vaporizer device 100 and/or to theenvironment, latent heat losses due to vaporization of the vaporizablematerial 102 from the wicking element and/or the atomizer 141 as awhole, and convective heat losses due to airflow (i.e., air movingacross the heating element or the atomizer 141 as a whole when a userinhales on the vaporizer device 100). As noted herein, to reliablyactivate the heating element or heat the heating element to a desiredtemperature, the vaporizer device 100 may, in some implementations ofthe current subject matter, make use of signals from the sensor 113 (forexample, a pressure sensor) to determine when a user is inhaling. Thesensor 113 can be positioned in the airflow path and/or can be connected(for example, by a passageway or other path) to an airflow pathcontaining an inlet for air to enter the vaporizer device 100 and anoutlet via which the user inhales the resulting vapor and/or aerosolsuch that the sensor 113 experiences changes (for example, pressurechanges) concurrently with air passing through the vaporizer device 100from the air inlet to the air outlet. In some implementations of thecurrent subject matter, the heating element can be activated inassociation with a user's puff, for example by automatic detection ofthe puff, or by the sensor 113 detecting a change (.such as a pressurechange) in the airflow path.

The sensor 113 can be positioned on or coupled to (i.e., electrically orelectronically connected, either physically or via a wirelessconnection) the controller 104 (for example, a printed circuit boardassembly or other type of circuit board). To take measurementsaccurately and maintain durability of the vaporizer device 100, it canbe beneficial to provide a seal 127 resilient enough to separate anairflow path from other parts of the vaporizer device 100. The seal 127,which can be a gasket, can be configured to at least partially surroundthe sensor 113 such that connections of the sensor 113 to the internalcircuitry of the vaporizer device 100 are separated from a part of thesensor 113 exposed to the airflow path. In an example of acartridge-based vaporizer device, the seal 127 can also separate partsof one or more electrical connections between the vaporizer body 110 andthe vaporizer cartridge 120. Such arrangements of the seal 127 in thevaporizer device 100 can be helpful in mitigating against potentiallydisruptive impacts on vaporizer components resulting from interactionswith environmental factors such as water in the vapor or liquid phases,other fluids such as the vaporizable material 102, etc., and/or toreduce the escape of air from the designated airflow path in thevaporizer device 100. Unwanted air, liquid or other fluid passing and/orcontacting circuitry of the vaporizer device 100 can cause variousunwanted effects, such as altered pressure readings, and/or can resultin the buildup of unwanted material, such as moisture, excessvaporizable material 102, etc., in parts of the vaporizer device 100where they can result in poor pressure signal, degradation of the sensor113 or other components, and/or a shorter life of the vaporizer device100. Leaks in the seal 127 can also result in a user inhaling air thathas passed over parts of the vaporizer device 100 containing, orconstructed of, materials that may not be desirable to be inhaled.

In some implementations, the vaporizer body 110 includes the controller104, the power source 112 (for example, a battery), one more of thesensor 113, charging contacts (such as those for charging the powersource 112), the seal 127, and a cartridge receptacle 118 configured toreceive the vaporizer cartridge 120 for coupling with the vaporizer body110 through one or more of a variety of attachment structures. In someexamples, the vaporizer cartridge 120 includes the reservoir 140 forcontaining the vaporizable material 102, and the mouthpiece 130 has anaerosol outlet for delivering an inhalable dose to a user. The vaporizercartridge 120 can include the atomizer 141 having a wicking element anda heating element. Alternatively, one or both of the wicking element andthe heating element can be part of the vaporizer body 110. Inimplementations in which any part of the atomizer 141 (i.e., heatingelement and/or wicking element) is part of the vaporizer body 110, thevaporizer device 100 can be configured to supply vaporizable material102 from the reservoir 140 in the vaporizer cartridge 120 to the part(s)of the atomizer 141 included in the vaporizer body 110.

In an embodiment of the vaporizer device 100 in which the power source112 is part of the vaporizer body 110, and a heating element is disposedin the vaporizer cartridge 120 and configured to couple with thevaporizer body 110, the vaporizer device 100 can include electricalconnection features (for example, means for completing a circuit) forcompleting a circuit that includes the controller 104 (for example, aprinted circuit board, a microcontroller, or the like), the power source112, and the heating element (for example, a heating element within theatomizer 141). These features can include one or more contacts (referredto herein as cartridge contacts 124 a and 124 b) on a bottom surface ofthe vaporizer cartridge 120 and at least two contacts (referred toherein as receptacle contacts 125 a and 125 b) disposed near a base ofthe cartridge receptacle 118 of the vaporizer device 100 such that thecartridge contacts 124 a and 124 b and the receptacle contacts 125 a and125 b make electrical connections when the vaporizer cartridge 120 isinserted into and coupled with the cartridge receptacle 118. The circuitcompleted by these electrical connections can allow delivery ofelectrical current to a heating element and can further be used foradditional functions, such as measuring a resistance of the heatingelement for use in determining and/or controlling a temperature of theheating element based on a thermal coefficient of resistivity of theheating element.

In some implementations of the current subject matter, the cartridgecontacts 124 a and 124 b and the receptacle contacts 125 a and 125 b canbe configured to electrically connect in either of at least twoorientations. In other words, one or more circuits necessary foroperation of the vaporizer device 100 can be completed by insertion ofthe vaporizer cartridge 120 into the cartridge receptacle 118 in a firstrotational orientation (around an axis along which the vaporizercartridge 120 is inserted into the cartridge receptacle 118 of thevaporizer body 110) such that the cartridge contact 124 a iselectrically connected to the receptacle contact 125 a and the cartridgecontact 124 b is electrically connected to the receptacle contact 125 b.Furthermore, the one or more circuits necessary for operation of thevaporizer device 100 can be completed by insertion of the vaporizercartridge 120 in the cartridge receptacle 118 in a second rotationalorientation such cartridge contact 124 a is electrically connected tothe receptacle contact 125 b and cartridge contact 124 b is electricallyconnected to the receptacle contact 125 a.

For example, the vaporizer cartridge 120 or at least the insertable end122 of the vaporizer cartridge 120 can be symmetrical upon a rotation of180° around an axis along which the vaporizer cartridge 120 is insertedinto the cartridge receptacle 118. In such a configuration, thecircuitry of the vaporizer device 100 can support identical operationregardless of which symmetrical orientation of the vaporizer cartridge120 occurs.

In one example of an attachment structure for coupling the vaporizercartridge 120 to the vaporizer body 110, the vaporizer body 110 includesone or more detents (for example, dimples, protrusions, etc.) protrudinginwardly from an inner surface of the cartridge receptacle 118,additional material (such as metal, plastic, etc.) formed to include aportion protruding into the cartridge receptacle 118, and/or the like.One or more exterior surfaces of the vaporizer cartridge 120 can includecorresponding recesses (not shown in FIG. 1A) that can fit and/orotherwise snap over such detents or protruding portions when thevaporizer cartridge 120 is inserted into the cartridge receptacle 118 onthe vaporizer body 110. When the vaporizer cartridge 120 and thevaporizer body 110 are coupled (e.g., by insertion of the vaporizercartridge 120 into the cartridge receptacle 118 of the vaporizer body110), the detents or protrusions of the vaporizer body 110 can fitwithin and/or otherwise be held within the recesses of the vaporizercartridge 120, to hold the vaporizer cartridge 120 in place whenassembled. Such an assembly can provide enough support to hold thevaporizer cartridge 120 in place to ensure good contact between thecartridge contacts 124 a and 124 b and the receptacle contacts 125 a and125 b, while allowing release of the vaporizer cartridge 120 from thevaporizer body 110 when a user pulls with reasonable force on thevaporizer cartridge 120 to disengage the vaporizer cartridge 120 fromthe cartridge receptacle 118.

In some implementations, the vaporizer cartridge 120, or at least aninsertable end 122 of the vaporizer cartridge 120 configured forinsertion in the cartridge receptacle 118, can have a non-circular crosssection transverse to the axis along which the vaporizer cartridge 120is inserted into the cartridge receptacle 118. For example, thenon-circular cross section can be approximately rectangular,approximately elliptical (i.e., have an approximately oval shape),non-rectangular but with two sets of parallel or approximately parallelopposing sides (i.e., having a parallelogram-like shape), or othershapes having rotational symmetry of at least order two. In thiscontext, approximate shape indicates that a basic likeness to thedescribed shape is apparent, but that sides of the shape in questionneed not be completely linear and vertices need not be completely sharp.Rounding of both or either of the edges or the vertices of thecross-sectional shape is contemplated in the description of anynon-circular cross section referred to herein.

The cartridge contacts 124 a and 124 b and the receptacle contacts 125 aand 125 b can take various forms. For example, one or both sets ofcontacts can include conductive pins, tabs, posts, receiving holes forpins or posts, or the like. Some types of contacts can include springsor other features to facilitate better physical and electrical contactbetween the contacts on the vaporizer cartridge 120 and the vaporizerbody 110. The electrical contacts can optionally be gold-plated, and/orinclude other materials.

FIGS. 1B-1D illustrate an embodiment of the vaporizer body 110 having acartridge receptacle 118 into which the vaporizer cartridge 120 can bereleasably inserted. FIGS. 1B and 1C show top views of the vaporizerdevice 100 illustrating the vaporizer cartridge 120 being positioned forinsertion and inserted, respectively, into the vaporizer body 110. FIG.1D illustrates the reservoir 140 of the vaporizer cartridge 120 beingformed in whole or in part from translucent material such that a levelof the vaporizable material 102 is visible from a window 132 (e.g.,translucent material) along the vaporizer cartridge 120. The vaporizercartridge 120 can be configured such that the window 132 remains visiblewhen insertably received by the vaporizer cartridge receptacle 118 ofthe vaporizer body 110. For example, in one exemplary configuration, thewindow 132 can be disposed between a bottom edge of the mouthpiece 130and a top edge of the vaporizer body 110 when the vaporizer cartridge120 is coupled with the cartridge receptacle 118.

FIG. 1E illustrates an example airflow path 134 created during a puff bya user on the vaporizer device 100. The airflow path 134 can direct airto a vaporization chamber 150 (see FIG. 1F) contained in a wick housingwhere the air is combined with inhalable aerosol for delivery to a uservia a mouthpiece 130, which can also be part of the vaporizer cartridge120. For example, when a user puffs on the vaporizer device 100 device100, air can pass between an outer surface of the vaporizer cartridge120 (for example, window 132 shown in FIG. 1D) and an inner surface ofthe cartridge receptacle 118 on the vaporizer body 110. Air can then bedrawn into the insertable end 122 of the vaporizer cartridge 120,through the vaporization chamber 150 that includes or contains theheating element and wicking element, and out through an outlet 136 ofthe mouthpiece 130 for delivery of the inhalable aerosol to a user.

As shown in FIG. 1E, this configuration causes air to flow down aroundthe insertable end 122 of the vaporizer cartridge 120 into the cartridgereceptacle 118 and then flow back in the opposite direction afterpassing around the insertable end 122 (e.g., an end opposite of the endincluding the mouthpiece 130) of the vaporizer cartridge 120 as itenters into the cartridge body toward the vaporization chamber 150. Theairflow path 134 then travels through the interior of the vaporizercartridge 120, for example via one or more tubes or internal channels(such as cannula 128 shown in FIG. 1F) and through one or more outlets(such as outlet 136) formed in the mouthpiece 130. The mouthpiece 130can be a separable component of the vaporizer cartridge 120 or can beintegrally formed with other component(s) of the vaporizer cartridge 120(for example, formed as a unitary structure with the reservoir 140and/or the like).

FIG. 1F shows additional features that can be included in the vaporizercartridge 120 consistent with implementations of the current subjectmatter. For example, the vaporizer cartridge 120 can include a pluralityof cartridge contacts (such as cartridge contacts 124 a, 124 b) disposedon the insertable end 122. The cartridge contacts 124 a, 124 b canoptionally each be part of a single piece of metal that forms aconductive structure (such as conductive structure 126) connected to oneof two ends of a resistive heating element. The conductive structure canoptionally form opposing sides of a heating chamber and can act as heatshields and/or heat sinks to reduce transmission of heat to outer wallsof the vaporizer cartridge 120. FIG. 1F also shows the cannula 128within the vaporizer cartridge 120 that defines part of the airflow path134 between the heating chamber formed between the conductive structure126 and the mouthpiece 130.

As mentioned above, existing vaporizer cartridges can include a wickingelement that is generally configured to withdraw a vaporizable materialfrom a reservoir housing such that the vaporizable material may besubsequently vaporized (e.g., by exposing the withdrawn vaporizablematerial to heat provided by a heating element). As used herein,“reservoir housing” is used synonymously with “reservoir.”

The withdrawal of the vaporizable material from the reservoir housingcan be due, at least in part, to capillary action provided by thewicking element, which pulls the vaporizable material along the wickingelement in the direction towards a vaporization chamber. As a result,the vaporizable material is fed into the wicking element by capillaryaction. The feed rate, however, can be a function of, at least in part,on the amount of vaporizable material contained within the reservoirhousing. Thus, as more and more vaporizable material is being withdrawnout of the reservoir housing during use, less vaporizable material ispresent within the reservoir housing. This can reduce the feed rate, andultimately, the effectiveness of the wicking element to withdraw thevaporizable material into the vaporization chamber. Under suchcircumstances, the effectiveness of the vaporizer device to vaporize adesired amount of vaporizable material, such as when a user takes a puffon the vaporizer cartridge, can be reduced.

Various features and devices are described below that improve upon orovercome the aforementioned issues. For example, various features aredescribed herein that replace the wicking element with a pumpingmechanism that is configured to pump the vaporizable material from thereservoir housing and into a vaporization chamber. The pumping mechanismcan achieve a feed rate that is substantially independent of the amountof vaporizable material contained within the reservoir housing.Implementing a pumping mechanism, as opposed to using a wicking element,may provide advantages and improvements relative to existing approaches,while also introducing additional benefits, as described herein.

The vaporizer cartridges described herein allow a desired amount ofvaporizable material to be pumped out of a reservoir housing at a ratethat is substantially independent of the amount of vaporizable materialwithin the reservoir housing. Further, the pumping of the vaporizablematerial can be substantially achieved without the use of moving parts.The vaporizer cartridges generally include a reservoir housing having astorage chamber configured to hold a first fraction of a vaporizablematerial and a dispensing chamber configured to hold a second fractionof the vaporizable material. As discussed in more detail below, thedispensing chamber is also configured to selectively dispense at least afirst portion of the second fraction of the vaporizable material (oralternatively, a portion of vaporized material) in response to thecreation of one or more pressure pulses within the dispensing chamber.These one or more pressure pulses are each created by the formation of arespective pocket or bubble of vaporized material within the dispensingchamber. Each pocket or bubble of vaporized material can force the firstportion of the second fraction of vaporizable material through at leastone dispense opening of the dispensing chamber. Alternatively, eachpocket or bubble of vaporized material can be forced through the atleast one dispense opening of the dispensing chamber by the pressurecreated during each respective pressure pulse.

FIGS. 2A-2B illustrate an exemplary vaporizer cartridge 200 that can beselectively coupled to and removable from a vaporizer body, such asvaporizer body 110 shown in FIGS. 1A-1D).vaporizer cartridge. Morespecifically, the vaporizer cartridge 200 includes a reservoir housing202 having a dispensing chamber 206 that is configured to dispense aportion of vaporizable material from the reservoir housing 202 into avaporization chamber 208 using a pumping mechanism that is actuated inresponse to, for example, a user puffing on a mouthpiece 205 coupledwith the vaporizer cartridge 200. While a mouthpiece 205 is shown inFIGS. 2A-2B, a person skilled in the art will appreciate that in otherembodiments, the mouthpiece 205 can be omitted and the user can directlypuff on the cartridge at an outlet (such as outlet 209 of vaporizationchamber 208). For purposes of simplicity, certain components of thevaporizer cartridge 200 are not illustrated.

As shown, the reservoir housing 202 has an inner volume defined by atleast a first pair of opposing reservoir walls 202 a, 202 b and a secondpair of opposing reservoir walls 202 c, 202 d. The reservoir housing 202includes a storage chamber 204 that is configured to hold a firstfraction of a vaporizable material 210 and the dispensing chamber 206that is configured to hold a second fraction of the vaporizable material212. The first fraction of vaporizable material 210 and the secondfraction of the vaporizable material 212 are collectively referred toherein as “vaporizable material.” While the respective inner volumes ofthe storage chamber 204 and the dispensing chamber 206 can vary, thecombined inner volumes of the storage chamber 204 and the dispensingchamber 206, as shown in FIGS. 2A-2B, is equal to the inner volume ofthe reservoir housing 202. This configuration may be desirable tomaximize the amount of vaporizable material that can be disposed intothe reservoir housing 202.

While the shape and size of the storage chamber 204 and the dispensingchamber 206 can vary, each chamber, as shown in FIGS. 2A-2B, issubstantially rectangular in shape with the storage chamber 204 beinggreater in size relative to the dispensing chamber 206. It may bedesirable to have a greater inner volume within the storage chamber 204compared to dispensing chamber 206 so as to maximize the amount ofvaporizable material that can be stored within the reservoir housing 202without substantially inhibiting the pumping mechanism within thedispensing chamber 206, as discussed in more detail below. In otherembodiments, the storage chamber 204 can have a different shape and/orbe smaller in size compared to the dispensing chamber 206.

While the storage chamber 204 and the dispensing chamber 206 can bepositioned relative to each other and within the reservoir housing 202in a variety of locations. FIGS. 2A-2B depicts one example configurationin which the storage chamber 204 is positioned within a top portion 203a of the reservoir housing 202 and the dispensing chamber 206 ispositioned within a bottom portion 203 b of the reservoir housing 202.It may be desirable to position the dispensing chamber 206 below thestorage chamber 204 to enhance the flow of the first fraction of thevaporizable material 210 into the dispensing chamber 206. Further, sucha position may also be desirable because it can inhibit a vacuum createdwithin the storage chamber 204 from adversely affecting the dispensingof vaporizable material (or vaporized material) from the dispensingchamber 206.

In general, as discussed above, the dispensing chamber 206 is configuredto dispense a portion of the second fraction of the vaporizable material212, such as second portion 212 a shown in FIG. 2B, into thevaporization chamber 208 using a pumping mechanism. While the pumpingmechanism can have a variety of configuration, the pumping mechanism, asshown in FIGS. 2A-2B, includes a first heating element 214 disposedwithin the dispensing chamber 206. This first heating element 214 isconfigured to at least partially vaporize a portion of the secondfraction of the vaporizable material 212 that is in close proximity to,and/or in contact with, the first heating element 214 at the time ofactivation of the first heating element 214. Once the portion of thesecond fraction of the vaporizable material 212 is at least partiallyvaporized, the first heating element 214 can be deactivated, oralternatively, the temperature of the first heating element 214 can bereduced to prevent further vaporization until desired.

The first heating element 214 can be or include one or more of aconductive heater, a radiative heater, and a convective heater. Asdiscussed above, one type of heating element is a resistive heatingelement, such as a resistive coil, which can be constructed of or atleast include a material (e.g., a metal or alloy, for example anickel-chromium alloy, or a non-metallic resistor) configured todissipate electrical power in the form of heat when electrical currentis passed through one or more resistive segments of the heating element.As shown in FIGS. 2A-2B, the first heating element 214 is in the form ofa resistive coil.

In some embodiments, the vaporizer cartridge 200 includes two or morecartridge contacts such as, for example, a first cartridge contact 215 aand a second cartridge contact 215 b. The two or more cartridge contactscan be configured to couple, for example, with the receptacle contacts125 a and 125 b in order to form one or more electrical connections withthe vaporizer body 110. The circuit completed by these electricalconnections can allow delivery of electrical current to the firstheating element 214. The circuit can also serve additional functionssuch as, for example, measuring a resistance of the first heatingelement 214 for use in determining and/or controlling a temperature ofthe first heating element 214 based on a thermal coefficient ofresistivity of the first heating element 214.

The first heating element 214 can be positioned in a variety oflocations within the dispensing chamber 206. For example, as shown inFIGS. 2A-2B, the first heating element 214 is substantially centeredwithin the dispensing chamber 206. It may be desirable to align at leasta portion of the first heating element 214 with a passageway, such asdispense opening 218, that is configured to allow a portion of thesecond fraction of vaporizable material 212 to be selectively dispensedfrom the dispensing chamber 206. Alternatively, or in addition, it maybe desirable to align at least a portion of the first heating element214 with a passageway, such as orifice 230, that is configured to allowa portion of the first fraction of the vaporizable material 210 toselectively flow into the dispensing chamber 206.

As discussed above, the first heating element 214 can have a variety ofconfigurations and can be activated/reactivated in a variety of ways.Once the first heating element 214 is activated, for example, concurrentwith and/or after a user puffs on the mouthpiece 205, heat is expelledtherefrom. As the heat reaches a temperature that is substantially equalto the boiling point of the vaporizable material disposed within thereservoir housing 202, a portion of the second fraction of thevaporizable material 212 that is in close proximity to, and/or incontact with, the first heating element 214 is vaporized, as shown inFIG. 2B. As a result, a pocket or bubble of the vaporized material 216is formed, as shown in FIG. 2B, which generates a pressure pulse withinthe dispensing chamber 206. That is, the pressure pulse is generated bythe first heating element 214 momentarily vaporizing a portion of thesecond fraction of the vaporizable material 212. This pressure pulseforces a second portion 212 a of the second fraction of the vaporizablematerial 212 to be expelled out of the dispensing chamber 206, as shownin FIG. 2B. Thus, this pressure pulse generally functions as a pumpingmechanism that pumps vaporizable material from the reservoir housing 202and into the vaporization chamber 208 in response to at least a partial,temporary vaporization of a portion of the second fraction of thevaporizable material 212. As such, this pumping mechanism relies on thepressure pulse, rather than the amount of vaporizable material containedwithin the reservoir housing 202. Further, this pumping mechanism isconfigured such that substantially no moving parts are required toeffect the resulting pumping of the vaporizable material (or vaporizedmaterial) from the dispensing chamber 206.

While the size of the pocket or bubble of the vaporized material 216 canvary, the first heating element 214 is configured to produce a pocket orbubble having a size that inhibits the pocket or bubble from coming intocontact with, and thus released through, at least the dispense opening218. In some embodiments, the size of the pocket or bubble also preventsthe pocket or bubble from coming into contact with, and thus flowthrough, orifice 230. Thus, the first heating element 214 is configuredto vaporize an amount of vaporizable material that forms a pocket orbubble that stays, and collapses, within the dispensing chamber 206.

Further, during use, the first heating element 214 can create two ormore sequential pockets or bubbles, thus two or more sequential pressurepulses, during activation (e.g., while a user is drawing on themouthpiece 205). Each of these pockets or bubbles can separately expel arespective second portions 212 a of the second fraction of thevaporizable material 212 out of the dispensing chamber 206. Thus, thefirst heating element 214 can be configured to create one or moresequential pockets or bubbles of vaporized material during activation.

The dispensing chamber 206 can include a variety of dispensingconfigurations and features that allow for expulsion of the secondportion 212 a of the second fraction of the vaporizable material 212 inresponse to the pressure pulse. In some embodiments, the dispensingchamber 206 can include one or more dispensing openings that extendbetween the dispensing chamber 206 and the vaporization chamber 208. Inthe example shown in FIGS. 2A-2B, the dispensing chamber 206 includesone dispense opening 218 that extends through a wall 206 a of thedispensing chamber 206, and thus between the dispensing chamber 206 andthe vaporization chamber 208. As illustrated, the wall 206 a of thedispensing chamber 206 is part of one of the sidewalls (such as sidewall208 a) of the vaporization chamber 208. The dispense opening 218 isconfigured to allow the second portion 212 a of the second fraction ofthe vaporizable material 212 to pass therethrough, and thus from thedispensing chamber 206 and into the vaporization chamber 208, inresponse to the pressure pulse.

The dispense opening 218 can have a variety of configurations. Forexample, as shown in FIGS. 2A-2B, the dispense opening 218 forms apassageway that extends between the dispensing chamber 206 and anairflow passageway 220 defined by the vaporization chamber 208. In thisway, in response to the generation of the pressure pulse, the secondportion 212 a of the second fraction of the vaporizable material 212 canbe expelled from the dispensing chamber 206 through this passageway andinto the airflow passageway 220 for subsequent vaporization by anotherheater, such as second heating element 226 shown in FIGS. 2A-2B. Thedispense opening 218 can also have a diameter that is sized tosubstantially prevent the passage of the vaporizable material (e.g., aportion of the second fraction of the vaporizable material 212)therethrough, when an internal pressure of the reservoir housing 202 issubstantially equal to ambient pressure outside of the reservoir housing202. That is, the dispense opening 218 can include a diameter that issized such that a surface tension of the second fraction of thevaporizable material 212 is created to thereby substantially prevent anyvaporizable material from passing through, and thus, out of thedispensing chamber 206, when the pressure is equalized across thedispense opening 218.

While the vaporization chamber 208 can have a variety of configurations,the vaporization chamber 208, as shown in FIGS. 2A-2B, is defined by atleast two opposing sidewalls 208 a, 208 b, one of which is the sidewall202 a of the reservoir housing 202, and a bottom wall 208 c extendingtherebetween. As such, in this illustrated embodiment, the sidewalls 208a, 208 b of the vaporization chamber 208 extends substantially parallelwith the sidewalls 202 a, 202 b of the reservoir housing 202. As shown,the vaporization chamber 208 defines the airflow passageway 220 thatextends therethrough. The airflow passageway 220 is configured to directair, illustrated as dash-lined-lined arrow 222, through the vaporizationchamber 208 so that the air 222 will mix with the vaporized material toform an aerosol, illustrated as dash-lined arrow 223. The airflowpassageway 220 further directs the aerosol 223 through the outlet 209 ofthe vaporization chamber 208, and thus the mouthpiece 205, forinhalation by a user.

In some embodiments, at least one wall of the vaporization chamber 208,such as sidewall 208 a which is also sidewall 202 a of the reservoirhousing 202, can be formed of, or coated with, a hydrophobic material soas to prevent any condensation from accumulating within the vaporizationchamber 208. As such, any water that may be present in the aerosol 223and in the air 222 can be carried through and out of the vaporizationchamber 208 as the user puffs on the mouthpiece 205.

The air 222 enters the vaporization chamber 208 through the bottom wall208 c as a user puffs on the mouthpiece 205. As such, the bottom wall208 c is configured to allow the air 222 to readily pass therethroughand into the vaporization chamber 208. While the bottom wall 208 c canhave a variety of configurations, the bottom wall 208 c is perforated,as shown in FIGS. 2A-2B. The perforations can be of any suitable sizethat allows air to pass through the bottom wall 208 c. In certainembodiments, the size of the perforations can substantially prevent anyvaporizable material dispensed from the dispensing chamber 206 oraerosol 223 to pass through the bottom wall 208 c, and therefore inhibitundesirable leakage into other portions of the device. The bottom wall208 c can include any suitable number of perforations, and therefore thenumber of perforations is not limited by what is illustrated in theFIGS. 2A-2B. Alternatively or in addition, the bottom wall 208 c can beformed of an air permeable material. Thus, the bottom wall 208 cfunctions as an air inlet for the vaporization chamber 208.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 2A-2B, the vaporization chamber 208 caninclude a valve 224 that is configured to allow air 222 to enter thevaporization chamber 208 through the bottom wall 208 c. As such, thevalve 224 can function as a one-way valve. The valve 224 can beconfigured to prevent any vaporizable material that may be expelled intothe vaporization chamber 208 but not vaporized from leaking through thebottom wall 208 c of vaporization chamber 208. Alternatively, or inaddition, the valve 224 can be configured to prevent air 222 and/oraerosol within the vaporization chamber 208 from passing through thebottom wall 208 c. The valve 224 can be mechanically and/orelectronically controlled. Various configurations of the valve 224 arecontemplated herein.

Alternatively, or in addition, the bottom wall 208 c can also beconfigured to prevent air 222 and/or aerosol within the vaporizationchamber 208 from passing therethrough. That is, the bottom wall 208 ccan be configured as a one-way valve, and therefore only allow air 222to pass through and into the vaporization chamber 208. In someembodiments, any of the remaining walls of the vaporization chamber 208can be perforated and/or formed of an air permeable material to allowair to pass into (or out of) the vaporization chamber 208 as desired.

As further shown in FIGS. 2A-2B, a second heating element 226 isdisposed within the vaporization chamber 208. The second heating element226 is configured to selectively flash evaporate the vaporizablematerial that is dispensed from the dispensing chamber 206 in responseto the pressure pulse. That is, when activated, for example, concurrentwith and/or after a user puffs on the mouthpiece 205, the second heatingelement 226 causes substantially instantaneous vaporization of thesecond portion 212 a of the second fraction of the vaporizable material212 that is expelled into the vaporization chamber 208. Thus, whenactivated, the second heating element 226 achieves a steady-statetemperature that is at least substantially equal to the vaporizationtemperature of the vaporizable material disposed within the reservoirhousing 202. As a result, when the dispensed portion of the vaporizablematerial (e.g., the second portion 212 a of the second fraction of thevaporizable material 212) is brought into close proximity of, or incontact with, a surface of the second heating element 226, the dispensedportion is instantaneously vaporized into vaporized material. Thisvaporized material can then combine with the air 222 passing through theairflow passageway 220 of the vaporization chamber 208. As a result, thevaporized material is condensed into an aerosol 223 that is subsequentlyinhaled by a user through the outlet 209 of the vaporization chamber,and thus the mouthpiece 205.

The second heating element 226 can be or include one or more of aconductive heater, a radiative heater, and a convective heater. Asdiscussed above, one type of heating element is a resistive heatingelement, such as a resistive coil, which can be constructed of or atleast include a material (e.g., a metal or alloy, for example anickel-chromium alloy, or a non-metallic resistor) configured todissipate electrical power in the form of heat when electrical currentis passed through one or more resistive segments of the heating element.As shown in FIGS. 2A-2B, the second heating element 226 is in the formof a resistive coil. The second heating element 226 can have a varietyof shapes and sizes. For example, the second heating element 226 canhave a greater size compared to that of the first heating element 214.

In some embodiments, the vaporizer cartridge 200 includes two or morecartridge contacts such as, for example, a first cartridge contact 227 aand a second cartridge contact 227 b. The two or more cartridge contactscan be configured to couple, for example, with the receptacle contacts125 a and 125 b in order to form one or more electrical connections withthe vaporizer body 110. The circuit completed by these electricalconnections can allow delivery of electrical current to the secondheating element 226. The circuit can also serve additional functionssuch as, for example, measuring a resistance of the second heatingelement 226 for use in determining and/or controlling a temperature ofthe second heating element 226 based on a thermal coefficient ofresistivity of the second heating element 226.

While the second heating element 226 can be disposed within thevaporization chamber 208 at a variety of locations, the second heatingelement 226, as shown in FIGS. 2A-2B, is positioned proximate to thebottom wall 208 c of the vaporization chamber 208. Further, as shown inFIGS. 2A-2B, the second heating element 226 is also positioned adjacentto the dispense opening 218. This illustrated position may be desired tohelp maximize the amount of vaporizable material that is brought intoclose proximity of, or in contact with, the second heating element 226,thereby enhancing the effectiveness of the vaporization thereof. Thesecond heating element 226 being positioned within a close proximity ofthe dispense opening 218 can also allow for a faster and more directflow of the dispensed vaporizable material toward the second heatingelement 226 for vaporization.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 2A-2B, the storage chamber 204 and dispensingchamber 206 are separated by a reservoir barrier 228 that is configuredto allow the storage chamber 204 to be in fluid communication with thedispensing chamber 206. While the reservoir barrier 228 can have avariety of configurations, the reservoir barrier 228 can include one ormore orifices that extend therethrough. In the example shown in FIGS.2A-2B, the reservoir barrier 228 includes an orifice 230 configured toallow a portion of the first fraction of the vaporizable material 210 toflow into the dispensing chamber 206 (e.g., as the pocket or bubble 216collapses due to condensation, thereby creating a vacuum within thedispensing chamber 206), thereby creating a pressure equilibrium acrossthe dispense opening 218. In other embodiments, at least a portion ofthe reservoir barrier 228 can be formed of a permeable material.

In this illustrated embodiment, the dispense opening 218 and the orifice230 are each configured such that there is low resistance flow throughthe dispense opening 218 as compared to the orifice 230. As shown, thesize (D₁) of the orifice 230 is less than the size (D₂) of the dispenseopening 218. In other embodiments, a one-way valve can be used. Forexample, as shown in FIG. 3 , a vaporizer cartridge 300 includes adispensing chamber 306 that includes a one-way valve 313 that isconfigured to prevent backflow of the second fraction of vaporizablematerial 212 through orifice 230 into the storage chamber 204 upon thecollapse of each pocket or bubble formed.

Referring back to FIGS. 2A-2B, during use, once the second portion 212 ais dispensed from the dispensing chamber 206, the pocket or bubblewithin the dispensing chamber 206 collapses. As a result, a vacuum iscreated within the dispensing chamber 206. This vacuum draws a portionof the first fraction of the vaporizable material 210 from the storagechamber 206 into the dispensing chamber 206 through the orifice 230 toreplenish the dispensed volume of the second fraction of the vaporizablematerial 212. As a result, the volume of the first fraction of thevaporizable material 210 decreases after each second portion 212 a isdispensed from the dispensing chamber 206.

Further, during use, as the volume of the first fraction of vaporizablematerial 210 decreases, e.g., as portions of the first fraction of thevaporizable material 210 flow into the dispensing chamber 206 viaorifice 230, negative pressure can be created in the storage chamber204. This negative pressure can prevent further portions of the firstfraction of vaporizable material 210 from flowing into the dispensingchamber 206, and thus additional portions of the second faction ofvaporizable material 212 from being dispensed from the dispensingchamber 206 and into the vaporization chamber 208. To eliminate orreduce this negative pressure, the pressure within storage chamber 204can be increased as portions of the second fraction of vaporizablematerial 212 are each dispensed. For example, in some embodiments, thestorage chamber 204 can include one or more vents, e.g., vent 211, thatare configured to selectively allow the passage of air into the storagechamber 206 from the environment to thereby substantially maintain aninner pressure (e.g., an inner pressure that is substantially equal toambient pressure) of the storage chamber 204. That is, vent 211 allowsambient air to enter into the storage chamber 204, thereby eliminatingthe creation of a counter vacuum that acts against the vacuum createdwithin the dispensing chamber 206 when the pocket or bubble collapses.Thus, as each pocket or bubble collapses within the dispensing chamber206, a portion of the first fraction of the vaporizable material 210 canflow through orifice 230 and into the dispensing chamber 206.

While the foregoing embodiment of the vaporizer cartridge has beendiscussed in the context of at least two heating elements, alternativeembodiments of the vaporizer cartridge may employ a single heatingelement or additional heating elements.

FIG. 4 illustrates another exemplary vaporizer cartridge 400 that can beselectively coupled to and removable from a vaporizer body, such asvaporizer body 110 shown in FIGS. 1A-1D. Aside from the differencesdescribed below, the vaporizer cartridge 400 can be similar to vaporizercartridge 200 (FIGS. 2A-2B) and therefore similar features are notdescribed in detail herein.

In this illustrated example, the vaporizer cartridge 400 includes only asingle heating element, i.e., heating element 432. As shown, the heatingelement 432 is disposed within the dispensing chamber 406. The heatingelement 432 is configured to selectively flash evaporate a portion ofthe vaporizable material 412 to produce a pocket or bubble having asufficient volume of vaporized material such that the pocket or bubblecomes into contact with, and therefore can be expelled directly through,the dispense opening 418 of the dispensing chamber 406, and into thevaporization chamber 408. That is, when activated, the heating element432 allows for substantially instantaneous vaporization of the portionof the vaporizable material that is in close proximity of, or in contactwith, a surface of the heating element 432. Thus, when activated, theheating element 432 has a steady-state temperature that is greater thanthe vaporization temperature of the vaporizable material disposed withinthe reservoir housing 402. As a result, the production of vaporizedmaterial occurs only within the dispensing chamber 406.

The vaporized material can then be expelled into the vaporizationchamber 408, where the vaporized material combines with the air 422passing through the airflow passageway 420. As a result, the vaporizedmaterial is condensed into an aerosol 423 that is subsequently inhaledby a user through the outlet 409, and thus mouthpiece 405.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4 , the vaporizer cartridge 400 includes aone-way valve 434 that is configured to prevent backflow of air 422 andaerosol 423 into the dispensing chamber 406 once the vaporized materialis expelled therefrom. As a result, once the vaporized material isdispensed into the vaporization chamber, the one-way valve closes,thereby allowing a vacuum to be created within the dispensing chamber406. This vacuum draws a portion of the first fraction of vaporizablematerial 410 through orifice 430 and replenishes the dispensing chamber406. As such, in this illustrated embodiment, the dispensing chamber 406is configured to hold one dose of vaporizable material for each puff onthe mouthpiece 405.

Various other configurations of a vaporizer cartridge using a singleheating element is also contemplated herein.

Terminology

For purposes of describing and defining the present teachings, it isnoted that unless indicated otherwise, the term “substantially” isutilized herein to represent the inherent degree of uncertainty that maybe attributed to any quantitative comparison, value, measurement, orother representation. The term “substantially” is also utilized hereinto represent the degree by which a quantitative representation may varyfrom a stated reference without resulting in a change in the basicfunction of the subject matter at issue.

When a feature or element is herein referred to as being “on” anotherfeature or element, it can be directly on the other feature or elementor intervening features and/or elements may also be present. Incontrast, when a feature or element is referred to as being “directlyon” another feature or element, there are no intervening features orelements present. It will also be understood that, when a feature orelement is referred to as being “connected”, “attached” or “coupled” toanother feature or element, it can be directly connected, attached orcoupled to the other feature or element or intervening features orelements may be present. In contrast, when a feature or element isreferred to as being “directly connected”, “directly attached” or“directly coupled” to another feature or element, there are nointervening features or elements present.

Although described or shown with respect to one embodiment, the featuresand elements so described or shown can apply to other embodiments. Itwill also be appreciated by those of skill in the art that references toa structure or feature that is disposed “adjacent” another feature mayhave portions that overlap or underlie the adjacent feature.

Terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments and implementations only and is not intended to be limiting.For example, as used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” areintended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearlyindicates otherwise.

In the descriptions above and in the claims, phrases such as “at leastone of” or “one or more of” may occur followed by a conjunctive list ofelements or features. The term “and/or” may also occur in a list of twoor more elements or features. Unless otherwise implicitly or explicitlycontradicted by the context in which it used, such a phrase is intendedto mean any of the listed elements or features individually or any ofthe recited elements or features in combination with any of the otherrecited elements or features. For example, the phrases “at least one ofA and B;” “one or more of A and B;” and “A and/or B” are each intendedto mean “A alone, B alone, or A and B together.” A similarinterpretation is also intended for lists including three or more items.For example, the phrases “at least one of A, B, and C;” “one or more ofA, B, and C;” and “A, B, and/or C” are each intended to mean “A alone, Balone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, orA and B and C together.” Use of the term “based on,” above and in theclaims is intended to mean, “based at least in part on,” such that anunrecited feature or element is also permissible.

Spatially relative terms, such as “forward”, “rearward”, “under”,“below”, “lower”, “over”, “upper” and the like, may be used herein forease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship toanother element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. It willbe understood that the spatially relative terms are intended toencompass different orientations of the device in use or operation inaddition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if adevice in the figures is inverted, elements described as “under” or“beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “over” theother elements or features. Thus, the exemplary term “under” canencompass both an orientation of over and under. The device may beotherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and thespatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly.Similarly, the terms “upwardly”, “downwardly”, “vertical”, “horizontal”and the like are used herein for the purpose of explanation only unlessspecifically indicated otherwise.

Although the terms “first” and “second” may be used herein to describevarious features/elements (including steps), these features/elementsshould not be limited by these terms, unless the context indicatesotherwise. These terms may be used to distinguish one feature/elementfrom another feature/element. Thus, a first feature/element discussedbelow could be termed a second feature/element, and similarly, a secondfeature/element discussed below could be termed a first feature/elementwithout departing from the teachings provided herein.

As used herein in the specification and claims, including as used in theexamples and unless otherwise expressly specified, all numbers may beread as if prefaced by the word “about” or “approximately,” even if theterm does not expressly appear. The phrase “about” or “approximately”may be used when describing magnitude and/or position to indicate thatthe value and/or position described is within a reasonable expectedrange of values and/or positions. For example, a numeric value may havea value that is +/−0.1% of the stated value (or range of values), +/−1%of the stated value (or range of values), +/−2% of the stated value (orrange of values), +/−5% of the stated value (or range of values), +/−10%of the stated value (or range of values), etc. Any numerical valuesgiven herein should also be understood to include about or approximatelythat value, unless the context indicates otherwise. For example, if thevalue “10” is disclosed, then “about 10” is also disclosed. Anynumerical range recited herein is intended to include all sub-rangessubsumed therein. It is also understood that when a value is disclosedthat “less than or equal to” the value, “greater than or equal to thevalue” and possible ranges between values are also disclosed, asappropriately understood by the skilled artisan. For example, if thevalue “X” is disclosed the “less than or equal to X” as well as “greaterthan or equal to X” (e.g., where X is a numerical value) is alsodisclosed. It is also understood that the throughout the application,data is provided in a number of different formats, and that this data,represents endpoints and starting points, and ranges for any combinationof the data points. For example, if a particular data point “10” and aparticular data point “15” are disclosed, it is understood that greaterthan, greater than or equal to, less than, less than or equal to, andequal to 10 and 15 are considered disclosed as well as between 10 and15. It is also understood that each unit between two particular unitsare also disclosed. For example, if 10 and 15 are disclosed, then 11,12, 13, and 14 are also disclosed.

Although various illustrative embodiments are described above, any of anumber of changes may be made to various embodiments without departingfrom the teachings herein. For example, the order in which variousdescribed method steps are performed may often be changed in alternativeembodiments, and in other alternative embodiments, one or more methodsteps may be skipped altogether. Optional features of various device andsystem embodiments may be included in some embodiments and not inothers. Therefore, the foregoing description is provided primarily forexemplary purposes and should not be interpreted to limit the scope ofthe claims.

One or more aspects or features of the subject matter described hereincan be realized in digital electronic circuitry, integrated circuitry,specially designed application specific integrated circuits (ASICs),field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) computer hardware, firmware,software, and/or combinations thereof. These various aspects or featurescan include implementation in one or more computer programs that areexecutable and/or interpretable on a programmable system including atleast one programmable processor, which can be special or generalpurpose, coupled to receive data and instructions from, and to transmitdata and instructions to, a storage system, at least one input device,and at least one output device. The programmable system or computingsystem may include clients and servers. A client and server aregenerally remote from each other and typically interact through acommunication network. The relationship of client and server arises byvirtue of computer programs running on the respective computers andhaving a client-server relationship to each other.

These computer programs, which can also be referred to programs,software, software applications, applications, components, or code,include machine instructions for a programmable processor, and can beimplemented in a high-level procedural language, an object-orientedprogramming language, a functional programming language, a logicalprogramming language, and/or in assembly/machine language. As usedherein, the term “machine-readable medium” refers to any computerprogram product, apparatus and/or device, such as for example magneticdiscs, optical disks, memory, and Programmable Logic Devices (PLDs),used to provide machine instructions and/or data to a programmableprocessor, including a machine-readable medium that receives machineinstructions as a machine-readable signal. The term “machine-readablesignal” refers to any signal used to provide machine instructions and/ordata to a programmable processor. The machine-readable medium can storesuch machine instructions non-transitorily, such as for example as woulda non-transient solid-state memory or a magnetic hard drive or anyequivalent storage medium. The machine-readable medium can alternativelyor additionally store such machine instructions in a transient manner,such as for example, as would a processor cache or other random accessmemory associated with one or more physical processor cores.

The examples and illustrations included herein show, by way ofillustration and not of limitation, specific embodiments in which thesubject matter may be practiced. As mentioned, other embodiments may beutilized and derived there from, such that structural and logicalsubstitutions and changes may be made without departing from the scopeof this disclosure. Such embodiments of the inventive subject matter maybe referred to herein individually or collectively by the term“invention” merely for convenience and without intending to voluntarilylimit the scope of this application to any single invention or inventiveconcept, if more than one is, in fact, disclosed. Thus, althoughspecific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, anyarrangement calculated to achieve the same purpose may be substitutedfor the specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is intended to coverany and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments.Combinations of the above embodiments, and other embodiments notspecifically described herein, will be apparent to those of skill in theart upon reviewing the above description. Use of the term “based on,”herein and in the claims is intended to mean, “based at least in parton,” such that an unrecited feature or element is also permissible.

The subject matter described herein can be embodied in systems,apparatus, methods, and/or articles depending on the desiredconfiguration. The implementations set forth in the foregoingdescription do not represent all implementations consistent with thesubject matter described herein. Instead, they are merely some examplesconsistent with aspects related to the described subject matter.Although a few variations have been described in detail herein, othermodifications or additions are possible. In particular, further featuresand/or variations can be provided in addition to those set forth herein.For example, the implementations described herein can be directed tovarious combinations and subcombinations of the disclosed featuresand/or combinations and subcombinations of several further featuresdisclosed herein. In addition, the logic flows depicted in theaccompanying figures and/or described herein do not necessarily requirethe particular order shown, or sequential order, to achieve desirableresults. Other implementations may be within the scope of the followingclaims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A cartridge for a vaporizer device, the cartridge comprising: a reservoir housing having a storage chamber configured to hold a first fraction of a vaporizable material and a dispensing chamber configured to hold a second fraction of the vaporizable material, the dispensing chamber being further configured to selectively dispense at least a portion of the second fraction of the vaporizable material through at least one dispense opening in response to generation of one or more pressure pulses created within the dispensing chamber; and a vaporization chamber in fluid communication with the dispensing chamber, the vaporizable chamber being configured to receive the dispensed vaporizable material from the dispensing chamber for vaporization by a first heating element to form a vaporized material.
 2. The cartridge of claim 1, wherein the dispensing chamber includes a second heating element that is configured to selectively vaporize at least a second portion of the second fraction of the vaporizable material in response to activation of the second heating element, and wherein the vaporization of the second portion of the second fraction of the vaporizable material creates the one or more pressure pulses.
 3. The cartridge of claim 1, wherein the at least one dispense opening is configured to prevent passage of the vaporizable material therethrough when an internal pressure of the reservoir housing is substantially equal to ambient pressure outside of the reservoir housing.
 4. The cartridge of claim 1, wherein the storage chamber and the dispensing chamber are in fluid communication with each other, and wherein a portion of the first fraction of the vaporizable material is drawn into the dispensing chamber in response to the dispensed vaporizable material being expelled from the dispensing chamber.
 5. The cartridge of claim 1, wherein the storage chamber and the dispensing chamber are separated by a reservoir barrier having at least one orifice extending therethrough, and wherein the at least one orifice is configured to allow a portion of the first fraction of the vaporizable material to be drawn into the dispensing chamber in response to the dispensed vaporizable material being expelled from the dispensing chamber.
 6. The cartridge of claim 1, wherein the first heating element is configured to selectively flash evaporate the dispensed vaporizable material into vaporized material in response to activation of the first heating element.
 7. The cartridge of claim 1, wherein the vaporization chamber defines an airflow passageway that extends therethrough, and wherein the airflow passageway is configured to allow the vaporized material to combine with an influx of air to substantially form an aerosol.
 8. A cartridge for a vaporizer device, the cartridge comprising: a reservoir housing having a storage chamber configured to hold a first fraction of a vaporizable material and a dispensing chamber configured to hold a second fraction of the vaporizable material; at least one heating element disposed within the dispensing chamber, the at least one heating element being configured to selectively vaporize at least a portion of the second fraction of the vaporizable material into vaporized material; and a vaporization chamber in communication with the dispensing chamber, the vaporization chamber being configured to receive the vaporized material from the dispensing chamber and configured to allow the vaporized material to be withdrawn therefrom.
 9. The cartridge of claim 8, wherein the vaporized material is dispensed from the dispensing chamber and into the vaporization chamber through at least one dispense opening that extends between the dispensing chamber and the vaporization chamber.
 10. The cartridge of claim 9, wherein the at least one dispense opening is configured to prevent passage of the vaporizable material therethrough when an internal pressure of the reservoir housing is substantially equal to ambient pressure outside of the reservoir housing.
 11. The cartridge of claim 8, wherein the storage chamber and the dispensing chamber are in fluid communication with each other, and wherein a portion of the first fraction of the vaporizable material is drawn into the dispensing chamber in response to the vaporized material being dispensed from the dispensing chamber.
 12. The cartridge of claim 8, wherein the storage chamber and the dispensing chamber are separated by a reservoir barrier having at least one orifice extending therethrough, and wherein the at least orifice is configured to allow a portion of the first fraction of the vaporizable material to be drawn into the dispensing chamber in response to the vaporized material being dispensed from the dispensing chamber.
 13. A vaporizer device, comprising: a vaporizer body; and a cartridge that is selectively coupled to and removable from the vaporizer body, the cartridge including: a reservoir housing having a storage chamber configured to hold a first fraction of a vaporizable material and a dispensing chamber configured to hold a second fraction of the vaporizable material, the dispensing chamber being further configured to selectively dispense at least a portion of the second fraction of the vaporizable material through at least one dispense opening in response to generation of one or more pressure pulses created within the dispensing chamber, and a vaporization chamber in fluid communication with the dispensing chamber, the vaporizable chamber being configured to receive the dispensed vaporizable material from the dispensing chamber for vaporization by a first heating element to form a vaporized material.
 14. The device of claim 13, wherein the vaporizer body includes a power source.
 15. The device of claim 13, wherein the dispensing chamber includes a second heating element that is configured to selectively vaporize at least a second portion of the second fraction of the vaporizable material in response to activation of the second heating element, and wherein the vaporization of the second portion of the second fraction of the vaporizable material creates the one or more pressure pulses.
 16. The device of claim 13, wherein the at least one dispense opening is configured to prevent passage of the vaporizable material therethrough when an internal pressure of the reservoir housing is substantially equal to ambient pressure outside of the reservoir housing.
 17. The device of claim 13, wherein the storage chamber and the dispensing chamber are in fluid communication with each other, and wherein a portion of the first fraction of the vaporizable material is drawn into the dispensing chamber in response to the dispensed vaporizable material being expelled from the dispensing chamber.
 18. The device of claim 13, wherein the storage chamber and the dispensing chamber are separated by a reservoir barrier having at least one orifice extending therethrough, and wherein the at least one orifice is configured to allow a portion of the first fraction of the vaporizable material to be drawn into the dispensing chamber in response to the dispensed vaporizable material being expelled from the dispensing chamber.
 19. The device of claim 13, wherein the first heating element is configured to selectively flash evaporate the dispensed vaporizable material into vaporized material in response to activation of the first heating element.
 20. The device of claim 13, wherein the vaporization chamber defines an airflow passageway that extends therethrough, and wherein the airflow passageway is configured to allow the vaporized material to combine with an influx of air to substantially form an aerosol. 